A 54-year-old woman accused of killing a Menlo Park couple while driving drunk was taken from a jail hospital bed to court Tuesday, where she pleaded not guilty to two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter and other charges.

Marjorie Reitzell, of Redwood City, was originally scheduled to be arraigned on Oct. 28. But the proceedings were delayed seven times because of a medical condition that San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said he initially heard described as chest pains. Wagstaffe said he has since received no update on her ailments. "I was told she looked just fine today," added Wagstaffe, who did not go to the arraignment. "Whatever she's suffering from, there appears to be no visible vestiges of it."

Reitzell did make a brief court appearance on Nov. 5 and was provided a court-appointed defense attorney, Richard Keyes.

Although the media and others were told Tuesday morning that Reitzell would not be in court for her 1:30 p.m. arraignment, she did show up at about 2 p.m. Wagstaffe said county hospital doctors cleared her just before 1 p.m. to appear.

Her older brother, Ronald Reitzell, said he was with his sister at the hospital Tuesday morning when told she would not be going to court. He chafed when informed she was brought before a judge that afternoon. Although doctors won't tell him the nature of his sister's physical problems, he said he doesn't believe she's fit to stand trial.

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"She's not mentally competent to make no plea," Reitzell said in a phone interview.

Marjorie Reitzell entered her plea before San Mateo County Superior Judge Mark Forcum. In addition to the two counts of vehicular manslaughter, she pleaded not guilty to felony counts of drunken driving and drunken driving causing injury, with an enhancement for having a previous drunken driving conviction. A preliminary hearing for her case was scheduled for Jan. 17 at 9 a.m., with a six-hour estimate for the proceedings.

According to prosecutors, Reitzell's blood alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit on Oct. 24 when she plowed into Kamal Singh, 45, and Balbir Singh, 50, on Chilco Street as the couple was out taking an early evening walk with their dog.

Reitzell could eventually be charged with second-degree murder if evidence still being collected supports that, Wagstaffe said. She is being held on a $2 million bail.